Eastern Oklahoma State College to announce gift in honor of former college president

4/15/2016

WILBURTON, OK (April 15, 2016) – Eastern Oklahoma State College will announce a major gift on Friday, April 29 in honor of a former president of the institution.

The family of the late E.E. Tourtellotte, Eastern’s seventh president, will reveal the amount and plans for the gift at 2 p.m. in the Student Center Ballroom in Wilburton. The event is open to the public.

Pete, Betty and Jim Tourtellotte, three of the late president’s children, will join local and state representatives for the announcement, including Eastern President Dr. Stephen E. Smith and Oklahoma State System of Higher Education Chancellor Glen D. Johnson.

In 1924 at the age of 30, E.E. Tourtellotte became president of the college that was known as the Oklahoma School of Mines and Metallurgy at the time. During his 12-year tenure as president, Tourtellotte oversaw the institution’s transition to Eastern Oklahoma College and was instrumental in the growth of student enrollment, academic programs and campus facilities.